Kara Charette adds 16 points in the setback

EASTON, Mass. (February 19, 2014) – Sophomore guard Dyamond Gardner (Cambridge, Mass.) tallied a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds, but it wasn’t enough as the Franklin Pierce University women’s basketball team fell behind early in the first half of Wednesday night’s game and couldn’t catch up in an 81-67 setback to Stonehill at Merkert Gymnasium in Easton, Mass.

Franklin Pierce dropped its second straight in falling to 14-10 overall and 11-8 in the Northeast-10, while the Skyhawks improved to 17-6 and 14-5 in league play.

Joining Gardner with a team-high tying 16 points was sophomore forward Kara Charette (Fairhaven, Mass.).

Mary Louise Dixon paced four Skyhawks in double-figures with a game-high 23 points (9-of-15) shooting, while Asia Ewing came off the pine for 16 points. Shannon Brown and Paige Marshall followed with 13 and 10 points, respectively.

Stonehill was outstanding offensively in the game by connecting at a 51-percent clip shooting. The Skyhawks scored nine of the game’s first 11 points, and Louis Dixon had a string of eight-consecutive points of her own to put Stonehill up by double-figures at 16-5 six minutes into the contest.

Stonehill led by as many as 27 in the first half in building a 52-28 lead at halftime.

Franklin Pierce tried to cut into the deficit in the second half, and eventually whittled it to nine points at 72-63 with 4:54 to go on a Gardner layup. However, Stonehill countered with nine-straight points to put the game out of reach and end the Ravens’ threat.

The Ravens shot 42 percent from the field, but did hold a slim 34-33 rebounding advantage. Nine of the 10 Ravens that played in the game scored, including eight points apiece from senior guard Brooke Coderre (Woonsocket, R.I.) and junior forward Jessica Hurd (Kegworth, England).

Franklin Pierce returns to action Saturday afternoon when the Ravens play host to Merrimack at 3:30 p.m. in The Fieldhouse in Rindge.

For more information on Franklin Pierce women’s basketball, please visit the team’s page at http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu. To follow the program even further, please visit Franklin Pierce Athletics on YouTube (www.youtube.com/FranklinPierceSports), Twitter (www.twitter.com/FPUathletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce women’s basketball apparel can do so on the athletic department’s online store at http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store(.)